trbartly's review
5.0
First off, I’d like to thank @jaironside for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Although I have loved the whole Unveiled series, Betwixt and Between is my favorite one yet! Not only was it the perfect combination of suspense and supernatural adventure, but it was a cute story about enduring love and familial relationships. It acted as a beautiful epilogue to Em and Ciaran’s story and even introduced some new characters that I would love to read more of in the future.
This is maybe a weird thing to pick-up on, but with International Women’s Day just a few days ago, I really found it refreshing that most of the characters in this story were female. From the main characters to the villains, there were only a couple of male characters. It was nice to read a book with strong women, who drive the plot and are complex and realistic in their motivations.
Additionally, I felt that the characterization of the returning characters was consistent and realistic, and the growth of new characters was interesting and enjoyable to read. There was no main character that was completely the same at the end as they were at the beginning.
The relationships built and maintained were also flawless. Of course, Em and Ciaran are center stage and I loved reading their interactions. There was a little drama, but it was never cliché and I loved that they worked it out in the end with healthy communication. Their love rang true and lasted despite any bad situations they were thrown into, which I LOVED.
Aside from them, though, there were many other great relationships throughout the book. It was nice to see Em interact with her older sister. I love how close they are now compared to where they started in book one. I also loved to see Em interact with Ciaran’s sisters, Aoife and Sorcha. Those interactions really helped balance some of darker bits. (Speaking of Aoife, I really feel there is a story in her future. I loved how there was foreshadowing that she will have more adventures in the Sidhe lands.)
Now that I’ve waxed poetic about the characters and such, I want to address plot and pacing. I enjoyed how Ironside switched between Ciaran and Em’s POV. It not only made parts more suspenseful because it made me wait to find out what was happening, but it moved the plot forward at a steady pace. I never felt the book dragged on or that we repeated anything due to the switch in POV. On the other hand, I never felt like there was a rush or that anything was underdeveloped to speed up the plot either. Ironside put care and thought put into every scene so that everything was important and interesting.
As always, I enjoyed Ironside’s world building as well. She does a great job of making a real location magical and using the folklore and landmarks as part of the plot. The setting is always integral to the story, which is rarer than you’d think.
So, overall, I really loved this book! Not only was it a good story on it’s own, but it acted as the perfect sequel and epilogue to Em and Ciaran’s story. I really enjoyed being able to immerse myself in this world and story again. It was superb and if you haven’t read this series already, I recommend you start immediately!
Although I have loved the whole Unveiled series, Betwixt and Between is my favorite one yet! Not only was it the perfect combination of suspense and supernatural adventure, but it was a cute story about enduring love and familial relationships. It acted as a beautiful epilogue to Em and Ciaran’s story and even introduced some new characters that I would love to read more of in the future.
This is maybe a weird thing to pick-up on, but with International Women’s Day just a few days ago, I really found it refreshing that most of the characters in this story were female. From the main characters to the villains, there were only a couple of male characters. It was nice to read a book with strong women, who drive the plot and are complex and realistic in their motivations.
Additionally, I felt that the characterization of the returning characters was consistent and realistic, and the growth of new characters was interesting and enjoyable to read. There was no main character that was completely the same at the end as they were at the beginning.
The relationships built and maintained were also flawless. Of course, Em and Ciaran are center stage and I loved reading their interactions. There was a little drama, but it was never cliché and I loved that they worked it out in the end with healthy communication. Their love rang true and lasted despite any bad situations they were thrown into, which I LOVED.
Aside from them, though, there were many other great relationships throughout the book. It was nice to see Em interact with her older sister. I love how close they are now compared to where they started in book one. I also loved to see Em interact with Ciaran’s sisters, Aoife and Sorcha. Those interactions really helped balance some of darker bits. (Speaking of Aoife, I really feel there is a story in her future. I loved how there was foreshadowing that she will have more adventures in the Sidhe lands.)
Now that I’ve waxed poetic about the characters and such, I want to address plot and pacing. I enjoyed how Ironside switched between Ciaran and Em’s POV. It not only made parts more suspenseful because it made me wait to find out what was happening, but it moved the plot forward at a steady pace. I never felt the book dragged on or that we repeated anything due to the switch in POV. On the other hand, I never felt like there was a rush or that anything was underdeveloped to speed up the plot either. Ironside put care and thought put into every scene so that everything was important and interesting.
As always, I enjoyed Ironside’s world building as well. She does a great job of making a real location magical and using the folklore and landmarks as part of the plot. The setting is always integral to the story, which is rarer than you’d think.
So, overall, I really loved this book! Not only was it a good story on it’s own, but it acted as the perfect sequel and epilogue to Em and Ciaran’s story. I really enjoyed being able to immerse myself in this world and story again. It was superb and if you haven’t read this series already, I recommend you start immediately!
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